Farewell endurance test
It is worthwhile to examine an electric car that has been on the market for some time in an endurance test. Models sometimes receive major subcutaneous updates after just a year. We saw it with the Volvo C40 Recharge, which was rigorously overhauled after two years. We’ll wave them goodbye soon. We are already saying goodbye to the Ford Mustang Mach-E and we also drove it for a long time to test the underlying changes.
To get straight to the point: the Mustang gained in refinement. Also through modified hardware. He became less erratic and his handling more predictable. However, that does not alter the fact that we were able to continue to make many enjoyable kilometers with the Mustang Mach-E, which, like the aforementioned Volvo, underwent adjustments after about two years. The American stayed in our endurance test garage at the same time as the Volvo C40 Recharge Single Motor Extended Range. The Swedish electric SUV with a sloping roofline was better, felt more solid, but at the same time was more boring to drive.
The performance of the pair is certainly evenly matched. Even the consumption of the Mach-E kept pace; We also started in the Ford in late summer with a consumption of just under 19 kWh/100 kilometers. In winter this rose to around 25 kWh/100 kilometers, at the lowest temperatures. Last winter it often did not get colder than 5 degrees Celsius. On those few days when it was really slippery, we turned off the regeneration mode, so that the Ford didn’t immediately slow down like crazy after releasing the accelerator. The rear became very restless during slippery situations.
After the Mustang Mach-E, an Explorer
The rear-wheel drive Mustang Mach-E delivers more than enough power with 292 hp. It does not really impress in the field of fast charging, because 150 kW is the maximum power for DC charging. We had to talk about this during the report we recently made about the old Ford and the new Ford, where we drove from Saarlouis to Cologne to see the production of the new Explorer. That will be our next endurance tester from Ford, but it is not yet available to us.
How you open doors could be improved
There are some details that could be improved, such as the door handles on the inside and the buttons to open the doors from the outside. It’s hard for us to get used to it. The range predictor remains at 500 plus for a long time and eventually counts down hard. We did not experience any electronic problems, such as pioneering Mustang Mach-E drivers experienced. We readily recognize their comments about the lack of refinement in the chassis. Although the Ford is noticeably better since the late 2023 update, we still can’t call it refined. But that perhaps indicates that character compared to a good, but somewhat boring Volvo C40. In fact, that lack of refinement has characterized the Mustang since the 1960s.
Range autumn 400-450 kilometers
Winter range 350-380 kilometers
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl